A view from the parent side of public education, special education, and advocacy. Keeping quiet is not an option.

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Arne Says Common Core and Standardized Tests for Students with Disabilities

Dear Arne,

As I read the Federal Register the other day, frustration,
disappointment, annoyance, more disappointment, astonishment, were just a few of
the emotions I felt. I am still gobsmacked at the utter lack of understanding of students with disabilities. The
lack of compassion. The lack of expertise. And, frankly, the utter meanness of
your latest demonstration in lack of creativity when dealing with serious educational
issues. Just force students with disabilities to do the same as their age peers
with no regard for those disabilities and, magically, they will perform as
though they are neurotypical. That’s your plan?

Do you have any
understanding, at all, of the damage your policies, including this one, will have
on children in this country? Any notion at all? Have you ever met a student
with a disability…any disability? Have you ever considered, even for a minute,
how your opinions on subjects you clearly know nothing about will impact
millions of students? Have you thought about what their lives and the lives of
their families will look like as they face wildly inappropriate curricula and
testing – that are, ultimately, without purpose?

We do NOT suffer from a lack of high expectations. Just the thought of that is laughable. We do, however, suffer from policies that are
meant to fail our children. We suffer from poor funding. We suffer from
experienced teachers leaving the profession in droves. We suffer from the
effects of professional development aimed at how to administer a test, rather
than a true honing of teaching skills. We suffer from poorly written IEP’s and
from districts that are more interested in “saving money” than teaching our children.
We suffer from the notion that Common Core State Standards are good, well
researched, and validated. We suffer from lack of support from the Office of Civil
Rights.

It is impossible to take you and your policies seriously. If
you truly wanted students with disabilities to succeed, you would insist upon
and make sure that ALL school districts were well funded. You wouldn’t promote
standardized tests as the only way to judge the abilities of our students. You
would make sure there are certified teachers in ALL of our schools. You would
make sure new teachers are well supported within their districts and that there
is money to pay for continuing professional development.

So, when September 21st rolls around in a few
short weeks, how many students with special needs will be well and utterly
screwed as they are forced to face developmentally inappropriate curricula and
testing? Do you even know the number? How many of them won’t have a prayer of
graduating high school, much less be “college and career ready?” (Still waiting
for a definition of that, btw.) How many of those will simply end up in prison
or on welfare?

As I have said before, part of my job as a parent is to make
sure my daughter is as well prepared and educated as possible as she enters
into adulthood. I am trying to raise a well-rounded, curious, compassionate
individual with something to contribute to the world. Arne, please stop making
it so damned difficult and get out of the way. Please.